Page 45 - Standard Bank KZN Top Business Women 2021

It is very important that you’re passionate about your career choice because

if you do something that you are passionate about you are bound to succeed.

Founder and Director of Thandekile Projects In advising others, Thandi says that if you know that you comfortable with it. “When I decided to branch off into
will need financial muscle in the future you need to plan. owning a retail service station, I first went to school. I
“I planned this purchase for over five years because I knew did my MBA, and my focus was on the ownership of
handi MaThabethe Ngxongo is the dynamic
that this is what I wanted to do,” she says. This meant that petroleum service stations in KwaZulu-Natal. I did that
and motivated director and founder of
Thandi had to make sacrifices along her journey to achieve because I wanted to network with other women who
Thandekile Projects, which has four
her end goal. are in the business. I wanted to gain more information.
Tdifferent portfolios: BP Moore Road Service
I wanted to gain more confidence because I knew that
Station, Thandi’s Kitchen, Property Investment, and However, her vision has not come to an end and in the
this was a male dominated area.” Her advice to young
the uThandekile Foundation. future, she intends to continue to be a great businesswoman
people following in her footsteps is to, “Please make
and make her mark in the petroleum industry. “When the
Thandi comes from a small rural town near Mooi River sure that you skill yourself as much as you can both
time is right, I will acquire more service stations and make
in KwaZulu-Natal where she attended school. Her formally and informally.”
sure that I grow within the industry,” she remarked.
journey in the petroleum industry started when she came
In order to cope with challenges, one of the interventions
to Durban to further her studies. Following completing Business Acumen
that Thandi has implemented is ensuring that there are
her first degree, she joined the Engen Refinery at
Thandi’s business acumen is evident in that she established good human resources within her companies. “I believe
Wentworth as a qualified chemical engineer.
Thandi’s Kitchen while she was still in a corporate position that good human resources are core in making sure that
“I grew from there and got exposed to different divisions and at Engen. Thandi’s Kitchen is a small eatery in Umbilo the business runs properly,” she explained.
businesses within the petroleum industry,” explains Thandi. that sells freshly made daily African food such as steamed
As Thandi cannot be present in each of her businesses
“That is when I decided I needed to invest in and run my bread, inhloko (cow head meat), usu (tripe), and istambu
all the time, she has people that she trusts who run her
own business within the petroleum industry because that is (samp) to the local community. While there are fast food
what I knew best and that is what I was comfortable with.” eateries in the area obtaining traditional African food is enterprises. “You need to make sure that the businesses
difficult, which is how the eatery has been positioned and are capacitated, and that the people know what they are
Creating a Foundation doing and can do their jobs successfully to increase the
is going very well, says Thandi.
performance of the company and the bottom line.”
Much of Thandi’s motivation to achieve stems from the
The Thandekile Projects’s commercial and residential
fact that there is general perception that a member of a property portfolio has grown through Thandi’s and her The second one is to make sure that the business systems
black community from a disadvantaged area will never husband’s love for property investment. run smoothly. “I am a systems’ person. I make sure that
succeed in life. However, she says, “I get motivation from there’s a structure in our businesses so that I can monitor
The uThandekile Foundation focuses on giving back to the
the fact that as much as I come from a rural area, through each of them and ensure continuous growth.”
community in rural areas. “We do different projects that
hard work, determination and with a vision, I can do
aim to alleviate previously disadvantaged kids, women and The service station business is a male dominated
anything that I want.” Her other source of motivation is
youth,” says Thandi. One of the projects is giving tertiary industry. At the time of Thandi completing her MBA
the need to change how things stand because she does
education guidance to learners. “We let them know what in 2019, only 4% of the garages in KwaZulu-Natal were
not come from a family of business people. “I need to
to expect at university and give career guidance. It is very female owned, which hasn’t changed much since then.
change the status quo to try and create a foundation for
important that you’re passionate about your career choice When she arrived at BP Moore Road there were a staff
my children,” she explains.
because if you do something that you are passionate about of 54 of which only three were females. “I think that we
The major challenge that Thandi has faced in branching you are bound to succeed.” must never shy away from the fact that we may be the
off and funding her own service station has been finance. only person at the table who is female. But if you know
Gain More Information
When you apply to run a service station you need to have your story and you are passionate and skilled, then it is
a large percentage of unencumbered cash in order to prove In advising other women, Thandi says that whatever easy for people to grasp your vision and run with it,”
that you have sufficient resources to acquire the business. your business choice, you should ensure that you are Thandi concluded.

43